ARTICLES IN THIS EDITION

• Physician-Assisted Suicide Bill Squeaks by the House, Heads to the Senate
• Collaboration Aims to Strengthen Delaware Healthcare
• House Takes Action to Ban "Gas Station Heroin"
• Supporting the Down Syndrome Community

Physician-Assisted Suicide Bill Squeaks by the House, Heads to the Senate

A bill seeking to legalize physician-assisted suicide cleared the House on Tuesday with a minimum of 21 votes, sending the controversial measure to the Senate for consideration.

House Bill 140 is sponsored by State Rep. Eric Morrison (D-Glasgow). It seeks to create a multi-step process allowing Delawareans with a life expectancy of less than six months to obtain and self-administer a lethal dosage of a prescribed drug. 

Under the bill, a designated medical professional must confirm that the patient seeking suicide could make an informed, rational, and voluntary decision. Individuals seeking this option must be presented with all available alternatives, including comfort care, hospice care, and pain control. The process would also include two waiting periods. The bill would not allow anyone to request the fatal dosage on behalf of another. 

Proponents maintain that assisted suicide allows terminally ill patients to end their lives at a time and place of their choosing while potentially avoiding a painful, prolonged death.

House Republicans opposed the bill, objecting to perceived flaws in the process and noting troubling issues that have arisen in other jurisdictions were the practice has been legalized.

State Rep. Jeff Hilovsky (R-Long Neck, Oak Orchard), in photo, cited the example of Canada, which enacted a physician assisted suicide law in 2016. In its first year, 1,018 people chose to end their lives under the program. According to the most recent statistics, 15,343 people received suicide assistance in 2023--about one out of every 20 deaths in the country that year. "That's an increase of 1,507%," Rep. Hilovsky told the chamber. "That is just an incredible amount." He said he believed the rapid increase is symptomatic of a growing societal acceptance of devaluing the lives of certain people.

State Rep. Rich Collins (R-Millsboro), who spent a career in the insurance industry, said he feared an assisted suicide law would lead to coercion of the elderly. "I had clients that I was absolutely convinced wanted their parents to die so they could get the money. When you have older folks that have money...and their children desperately need it, don't think [they won't use this law to get it]."

State Rep. Valerie Jones Giltner (R-Georgetown) said she views the bill as a slippery-slope issue. She said should it become law, she believes its scope would be quickly expanded to include non-terminal conditions. Citing a conversation she had with a handicapped man in the chamber just prior to the debate, she said people with costly medical needs could easily feel pressured into opting for physician-assisted suicide to give their families financial relief.

Rep. Jones Giltner's argument is bolstered by a recent column authored by Drs. Mark S. Komrad, MD & Annette Hanson, MD in the journal Psychiatric Times. It noted:

"While we recognize that individuals of good conscience may differ on the ethics of physician-assisted suicide, we have consistently maintained—as the American Medical Association has opined—that it is fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer, would be difficult or impossible to control, and would pose serious societal risks...Despite such clear statements, we and others have called attention to the ever-expanding eligibility criteria for physician-assisted suicide/euthanasia, particularly in Canada, Belgium, and the Netherlands. In essence, every one of these foreign jurisdictions that has legalized physician-assisted suicide/euthanasia has eventually expanded them...The expansion typically begins with...end-stage or terminal illness and gradually broadens to “chronic, nonterminal, or treatment-refractory illness."

House Bill 140 is pending action in the Senate Executive Committee, from which it is expected to win release.

LEGISLATIVE BRIEFS

Collaboration Aims to Strengthen Delaware Healthcare

State healthcare advocates and organizations joined lawmakers Thursday morning at Legislative Hall to announce a coordinated effort to improve the availability and delivery of medical services in Delaware.

The cross-sector coalition consists of the Delaware Healthcare Association, Medical Society of Delaware, Delaware Nurses Association, Delaware Health Care Facilities Association, and Delaware Association for Home & Community Care.

Delaware faces significant healthcare challenges due to its growing and aging population. Collectively, Delaware residents are the nation’s sixth oldest and eighth fastest growing.

The group has adopted an action agenda that includes developing new health workers, reducing the need for pre-authorization, and removing healthcare delivery barriers. To view the complete agenda, click here.

"We are ushering in a new beginning and positive step forward that will make the First State first in health," said Brian Frazee, President & CEO of the Delaware Healthcare Association. "That takes all of us, together, to fight for...a strong system for quality, affordable, accessible and equitable healthcare.”

The event also marked the formation of the “First State Health Leaders Alliance” to facilitate broad-based collaboration among decision-makers.

State Rep. Valerie Jones Giltner (R-Georgetown), in photo, a retired nurse and former healthcare executive, said she supports the holistic approach the new partnership promises. “In Delaware, we have higher rates of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and cancer than the rest of the nation, which places a strain on our healthcare facilities and contributes to higher healthcare costs.

"At the same time, our much-needed healthcare workforce struggles with burnout stemming from the day-to-day stress of caregiving, administrative burdens of dealing with insurance, and even violent threats and assaults," she said. "We cannot improve healthcare in Delaware unless we tackle the challenges of the entire healthcare system."

House Takes Action to Ban "Gas Station Heroin"

The House of Representatives is proposing to prohibit the sale of so-called "gas station heroin" in The First State.

House Bill 21 would ban the sale of any material, compound, mixture, or preparation containing tianeptine.

According to the Mayo Clinic, tianeptine is a medicine legally available in some European, Asian, and South American countries to treat anxiety, depression, and irritable bowel syndrome.

While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved tianeptine for medical use, it can be incorporated into supplements and "elixir formulations." It is an ingredient in products such as ZaZa, Tianna Red, and Neptune's Fix that are commonly sold in small stores, gas stations, and online.

Tianeptine acts similarly to opioid drugs and, when used in large dosages, can cause a high or a feeling of euphoria. However, abusing it can have a host of detrimental impacts. In February 2024, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 20 cases of tianeptine use in New Jersey that led to hospital treatment, including 13 that required intensive care. 

At least 12 states have already banned tianeptine products. House Bill 12 passed unanimously and now goes to the Senate for consideration.

PHOTO BRIEF

Supporting the Down Syndrome Community

This week, the Delaware General Assembly commemorated the 18th anniversary of World Down Syndrome Day by wearing mismatched socks as part of a global initiative to raise awareness about the condition.

Down syndrome occurs when a person is born with an extra copy of chromosome 21, which alters development and results in a range of physical and cognitive challenges. It is the most common chromosomal condition in the United States, with approximately 5,700 babies diagnosed each year. In total, around 400,000 Americans are living with Down syndrome, many of whom overcome their challenges to lead fulfilling lives and make valuable contributions to their communities.

In honor of the occasion, the Down Syndrome Association of Delaware distributed over 50,000 pairs of mismatched socks. Additionally, lawmakers passed a concurrent resolution officially designating March 21st as "Rock Your Socks for World Down Syndrome Day," celebrating the beauty and contributions of individuals with Down syndrome in Delaware.

IN PHOTOS: State Reps. Mike Smith and Kevin Hensley display their colorful, mismatched socks.